


Meet-cute

by roseandthorns28



Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Coffee Shops, M/M, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-22
Updated: 2015-07-25
Packaged: 2018-04-10 16:15:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4398737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roseandthorns28/pseuds/roseandthorns28
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur meets Eames in a coffee shop. He is reluctantly charmed. If only there weren't things like his real life standing in the way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Reluctantly charmed

Arthur stood in line glancing at his watch impatiently. It was quarter past ten and he was late. He had promised he’d meet Dom and their new team early in the morning so they could get started as soon as possible, their client being a hardass and a stickler for punctuality. He sighed as the line moved infinitesimally and craned his neck to gauge what the hold up was regarding.

He caught sight of the first person in line, a young college girl giggling and blushing as she chatted with the barista. He glared at the back of her head before returning his gaze to his watch, his foot tapping anxiously, a perfect parody of an impatient businessman.

When it was finally his turn five minutes later, he looked up at the barista, ready to give him a piece of his mind when he froze. In front of him was quite possibly the most delicious looking specimen of a man, thick with tattoos curling under his company t-shirt, a light smattering of stubble on his cheeks and sparkling light eyes that winked at him. He could see now why it had taken so long for everyone to order before him.

 

“What can I get for you this fine morning?” The barista asked with a smirk that made Arthur want to punch things. He scowled instead. “A double shot espresso and fill the rest of the medium cup with coffee.” He said a little curtly, fishing out his wallet from the back pocket to make the transaction quicker so he could get the hell out of here, away from the annoying hustle bustle of the coffee shop but most importantly the smug gaze of the barista that held him in place like a butterfly pinned to a corkboard.

“Nothing to eat? You should try the double chocolate chip cookie. You look like you could use some sweetness in your life.” The barista said leaning over the counter with a palm pressed to the countertop while the other hovered over the computer screen.

Arthur glanced at his nametag because honestly, if he was going to argue about his life with someone, he should at least know his name. “No, thank you, _George_.” He said through gritted teeth, trying to convince himself that he did not sweep over the well defined shoulders and bulging biceps that the barista’s too small tshirt accentuated. “I’m allergic to chocolate. Just the coffee.”

The barista- George- gave such an exaggerated expression of shock that Arthur was sure he was going to pull a muscle or something. “Allergic to chocolate? Darling, that is just unfortunate.” He said, finally punching in Arthur’s order but still making no effort to move things along. “And, please, call me Eames. I so hate my given name.”

Arthur doesn’t care. He shouldn’t care. He’s not here to listen to his barista’s life story. Such unprofessionalism at work shouldn’t be allowed. Nor should such people as Eames ever be hired to work in a public place. He was too distracting for his own good.

“Are you sure I can’t tempt you to try one of our special pies? Fresh out of the oven. And not a hint of chocolate in them.” Eames continued, tilting his head as he smiled at Arthur.

“No, I’m fine, thank you.” Arthur said, trying his best to keep a hold on his temper. “I’m also very, very late so I would appreciate it if I could get that coffee now.” He added, unable to keep the bite out of his tone.

Eames, contrary to all predictable ways of reacting which basically amounted to hurrying the fuck up, paused. He fucking paused and raked his gaze over Arthur and his crisp, bespoke suit that he usually wore to impress potential clients. Or the first day of a very exciting job. “Late for a business meeting, then?” Eames finally asked, his eyes returning to the socially acceptable level.

Although, Arthur doubted looking at someone with so much heat in one’s gaze was socially acceptable, especially at the workplace. “Yes,” Arthur replied, uncertain as to why he was still indulging the other man when all he wanted was his goddamn cup of coffee. Although, he was self aware enough to know that it probably had to something to do with how Eames’ plump lips curled into a smile and his eyes shone with mischief. Arthur’s taste in men did lean towards such men who could ruin him with just a glance. “And, if I’m any later, the client will most probably just shoot me in the kneecap to make an example of me.” Arthur added with a roll of his eyes, wishing Eames would just give him his coffee and let him get the hell out of here.

Eames chose instead to laugh, that asshole. He threw his head back and laughed, his hand moving from the counter to press at his stomach as if it needed to be held or it would fall off from the force of his laughter. And, Arthur hadn’t even been joking.

“You’re hilarious, darling,” Eames said, his laughter dying down into chuckles. It was then that Arthur registered the pet name and his scowl, which had abated at seeing Eames laugh so wholeheartedly, returned.

“Do you always flirt with all your customers?” He asked a little snippily, remembering the college girl who had just been in his place a few minutes ago. Oh, god. He was the one holding up the line now. He was certain he could feel the pointed stares that were being thrown at his back. Arthur might know how to stare down the toughest, meanest businessmen but he was too scared to turn back and see how many people were waiting for their morning dose of coffee while he and Eames played twenty questions.

“Only the pretty ones.” Eames replied, breaking Arthur’s train of thought. He frowned in confusion before he remembered what he had said last. Right, flirting, which Eames was definitely doing as he looked at Arthur with that small, knowing smile that was driving him insane. He finally registered what Eames had said and scoffed.

“You’re going to have to do better than that. That was so cliché it made my teeth hurt.” He replied. He would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy this little back and forth, this banter between them. But he also knew this wouldn’t last. He would get his coffee, get out of here, maybe see Eames a couple of times while he stayed in town to work and then he would be off, to another country for another client.

“I can do better.” Eames looked like he was delighted to be offered a chance to prove himself. And, no, this wasn’t what Arthur wanted. When, during the transaction, had he actually started flirting back? This conversation was a trainwreck and he still didn’t have his coffee. “I guess,” Arthur replied, “You can start by actually giving me my coffee.” He said, desperate to get things back on track.

He hoped not every conversation with Eames was this digressing. Not that he was thinking about possible future conversations with Eames. He was simply anticipating any such incidents that might occur if he were to return to this coffee shop. Which he most certainly would. Aesthetic appeal of baristas notwithstanding, this was the closest to his place of business and the cup sizes were adequate.

“Darling, I will drown you in coffee if it’ll get a smile out of you.” Arthur rolled his eyes. “Killing me is hardly going to make me smile, Eames.” “Well, I’ll also heroically rescue you at the last minute, of course.” “Of course,” Arthur said, unable to hold back a small smile at the ridiculousness of their conversation. Eames looked fucking triumphant at that. “Was that a dimple, darling? Did you just smile at me?” he asked with raised eyebrows. Arthur huffed, his smile dropping. “No, that was a facial twitch. I get that sometimes. And, stop calling me darling.” He frowned slightly, peeved by the pet name. He wondered not for the first time why the hell he was still indulging Eames. There was something exceedingly charming about the other man, the way he held Arthur captive.

“Well, you haven’t given me your name. I don’t know what to call you.” Eames said, an innocent look on his face that Arthur didn’t believe for a second. Eames was anything but innocent. That bastard. “Arthur,” he replied, not even caring that he’d actually given his name to some random barista just because he smiled prettily at him. “It’s Arthur, which you should write down on the cup you’re about to give me.” He said, trying not to roll his eyes at the fact that he was having to explain Eames’ job to him.

“And, I shall do that, right away, Arthur,” He said, stretching out his name over three fucking syllables. It should sound stupid but instead, the way his name rolled off Eames’ tongue sounded incredibly hot. Fuck. He was getting distracted again. He raised an eyebrow when Eames remained motionless, trying to force him to start doing his job. “But first, there is something extremely important that I have to know.” Arthur frowned, going over the steps of buying a coffee in his head. He’d done all that was needed of him, given the order, been polite, not shot anyone (read Eames) for delaying his coffee order, what else was left? “What?” He asked cautiously.

“I need to know what you’re doing on Friday night, Arthur. It is of utmost importance. A matter of national security if you must.” Arthur blinked in confusion before snorting inelegantly. His lips twitched into a reluctant smile of their own accord. “Does that smile mean you’re free?” Eames asked with a twenty-watt grin. Arthur shook his head, schooling his face into a neutral mask that had led him to win quite a few poker games.

“I’m busy.” He replied a little harshly, trying to get his brain on the right track. Before Eames could interject, he stated, “And, I’m busy the rest of the year as well.” Eames pouted. Like a child. He pouted, his lower lip jutting out as he sighed. “If that’s how you would like to play it, darling.” He said as he grabbed a cup and scribbled out something at the side before making Arthur’s drink to his specifications. And would you look at that. Eames could actually be efficient and act like a professional. His eyes tracked the other man, watching his movements and he thought he could see actual disappointment. He did feel bad for snapping at him and he tried his best to tamp down on the feeling.

People like Eames weren’t really serious when it came to flirting. He knew the type. They would flirt with anything that had a pulse. Still, Arthur was only human and he was charmed by Eames somewhat. Albeit reluctantly. He sighed, shaking his head at his stupidity as he walked over to the other end of the counter where Eames was finally finishing up with his drink. In place of Eames a curly haired man was on the till now, somehow Arthur having missed that exchange. And then, there was a steaming takeaway cup of coffee in front of Arthur, attached to a broad palm that in turn led to well defined forearms and wide shoulders with black ink peeking out of the tshirt. Eames. Who was smiling softly at Arthur, holding his cup of coffee. Arthur did what any sane person would and he grabbed the cup with a nod, and rushed out before he could do something stupid like agree to go out with Eames.

It was only when he was a block away that he realized he never paid for his drink.


	2. The Long Con

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur decides to put the incident out of his head. However, Eames will not have it that way. The man is like a splinter, burrowing his way under Arthur's skin and annoying the hell out of him in the process.

Arthur decided to put the whole incident out of his mind and focus instead on his work. It wasn’t like anything could be gained by dwelling on Eames. There was no space in his life for the larger-than-life figure that he’d left behind in the coffee shop. And, yes, he _was_ thinking about it, about  having the chance to actually talk to Eames without it being part of a commercial transaction between them. He knew better than to remain in denial about his attraction to the barista. Lying to oneself never led to pleasant consequences in his business and he’d found that to be true for real life as well.

Arthur was brought out of his musings by the looming building of the hotel where Dom had booked a suite for them to meet with the client. He’d been so lost in thought that he hadn’t realized when he’d reached his destination. And, he was yet to taste the coffee that had caused him so much vexation. He remedied that immediately by bringing the coffee cup to his lips and taking a long swallow. Damn, that was good coffee. Apparently, Eames was not that bad at his job, that is when he actually got around to doing it.

He cursed inwardly when he realized his thoughts had circled back to Eames. Arthur sighed and walked into the lobby, occasionally sipping his coffee. He made a beeline for the elevator, rejoicing when he found it was empty and pressed the button for the 8th floor. He took the scant seconds to compose himself into his usual all-business, no-nonsense self that he embodied during a job. Eames had no place in this life and it would remain that way.

When he reached the suite, he took out his room key and swiped it, turning the light a satisfying green. Arthur took a breath to fortify himself ready to face the consequences of keeping their client waiting. What he found when he entered was Dom and the client sitting opposite each other as the former explained to the latter why he was the best man for the job. Dom didn’t let the interruption break his flow but Arthur’s attention was on Mr. Mark Warren, their client. Which was why he caught the tiny flicker of disappointment that crossed his features and then settled into an impassive expression as he gave a nod of acknowledgement to Arthur.

Arthur had meant to set his cup down and turn his attention towards Dom’s spiel when the tiny movement he made to put it down revealed writing on the side of his cup.

_‘Call me if you change ur mind xoxo Eames’._

It was only years of practice that kept a smile off his face and his expression unchanged. _Goddammit, Eames,_ he thought- and he was perceptive enough to know that his exasperation was tinged with fondness.

Arthur looked up and saw Mr. Warren’s gaze drift to the door, his attention drifting. Dom would have to stop soon or Arthur would need to intervene. He pushed away all thoughts of Eames and started building up his own, considerably smaller, speech in his mind. Arthur didn’t need words or long winded explanations to convince the client. His work spoke for him. He glanced to check if his manila folder containing research on the client himself was on the table and was satisfied when he found it undisturbed.

Finally, as Dom wound down, Arthur placed his coffee cup onto the side table and picked up the file folder. “I’m sure you have places to be, Mr. Warren, so I’ll keep this brief-”

“Actually,” Warren interrupted, causing Arthur to drop the Mr. from his name in his internal monologue, “we’re waiting for someone else right now. My... contact. He’s not here.”

“Your contact?” Arthur repeated slowly, feeling wrong-footed. He looked at Dom to see if he’d heard anything about the client bringing a freaking contact to the meeting but the other man had his gaze set on Warren so Arthur was unable to parse anything.

“Oh yes, he’s to be a part of your team.” Arthur raised an eyebrow in surprise. This was unheard of. Before he could reply, the door opened and a figure in a hideously mismatched suit walked in- no, swaggered in. Arthur turned to look and froze. There, standing in front of him was Eames.

If Arthur had kept his gaze on Eames for a second longer, and if he wasn’t so wrapped up in his own feelings of betrayal and anger, he would have noticed a similar expression of shock pass over Eames’ face. But he had already averted his gaze to look at Warren instead, trying to suss out if the businessman was playing some sort of a sick game with them before giving them the job. Or if he’d simply decided not to and this was- Arthur didn’t even know what this was. All he knew was that the barista who had flirted so outrageously with him and subsequently poked a hole in Arthur’s structured morning was now shaking hands with Warren and Cobb as he introduced himself as ‘Eames’. Knowing this would be key in every interaction hereon out, Arthur tuned himself back to the present, shoving his feelings into a box and vowing never to open them.

“I’m Cobb and this is my associate Arthur.”

“Pleased to make your acquaintance, Mr. Cobb and Arthur.” Eames replied, still rolling his name over his lying tongue like he had any right.

“Likewise, Mr. Eames.” Arthur replied, shaking Eames’ hand with a short, strong shake. He was a professional and he would behave as such. Anything other than his work had no place in this room. And, probably never would.

“Good,” Warren said, “now that we’re all introduced, let’s get down to business. Mr. Eames here is a forger and he’s already under my employment for this job.”

“We don’t usually work with a forger.” Dom interjected, making Arthur extremely glad that it was him who’d said that first before Arthur had had to. The last thing he wanted was to appear petty.

“I understand. But Mr. Eames is already working this job and he’s shown results. It’s the two of you that I have to vet.” Warren replied. Arthur stepped forward and held out the folder that he’d been gripping, even though all he wanted was to throw it on Warren’s smug face. “So have I.” He said, “For your eyes only.” He added as he saw Eames trying to glance into the folder.

Warren flipped through it with a small frown before he looked up sharply. “Is this a joke? Are you trying to blackmail me?” Arthur resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Although he secretly delighted at Eames’ surprise and, if he were reading him right, amusement.

“No, Mr. Warren, we wouldn’t do that.” Dom intervened. “This is simply a demonstration. This is all that Arthur has compiled on any potential marks. All your business rivals, contemporaries, people from your personal life you might not trust, things of that nature.” Warren shut the folder and deliberated for a moment. “This is good intel.” He said grudgingly.

Arthur was crowing with pride internally as he took back the folder and turned to place it back on the table. In doing so, he caught sight of Eames again. This time it was definitely amusement.

As Arthur straightened, Dom and Warren were shaking hands. “You’re hired.” He added a little perfunctorily. “But if I see any of the information from there anywhere-"

Arthur cut him off, “Were professionals, Mr. Warren.” He said, his eyes involuntarily flicking towards Eames who raised an eyebrow, a slight smirk on his face. He brought his gaze back to Warren. “None of this information is going anywhere.” Warren nodded, apparently satisfied.

“Mr. Eames, it was mentioned that you have already started working on the mark. What is it that you have achieved so far?” Arthur asked turning to the forger. And, if there was a slight bite to his words, Arthur felt it was explainable as a little bit of professional rivalry. Eames eyes were already on Arthur and he knew that they hadn’t really strayed much during the whole exchange. Neither had the smirk changed a bit.

“Well, what Mr. Warren here didn’t mention is that I’m not just a forger in the dreamscape. I have been working at the mark’s preferred coffee shop for the past few days, making my way into the system. It would be extremely easy for me to slip a slow acting sedative in his drink. And voila! We would have our mark sedated and ready to extract upon. Not to mention the research I have done on potential forges for within the dreamscape.” Eames concluded with an expansive gesture, a triumphant look in his eyes.

And, it rankled Arthur. It wasn’t just the fact that Eames knew more about the job (Dom and he didn’t even know who the mark was, hence the whole song and dance with the file folder) or the fact that the client for some reason, trusted Eames more (apparently he hadn’t heard of the cardinal rule of never trusting a conman). It wasn’t even the fact that Arthur had fell for the con man’s ruse (he knew the importance of a long con and it wasn’t like Eames had set out to make a fool of Arthur). What annoyed him was how fucking smug Eames was about it all.

Oh, add to it the fact that Dom looked impressed. The fucking traitor. “Very well, Mr. Eames. There’s always a first time for everything and this just so happens to be our first time working with a forger.” “Not just any forger, Mr. Cobb. I’m the best there is.” Eames had the gall to say and Arthur, Arthur couldn’t even protest because he had managed to fool Arthur. To crawl under his skin and reside there like a fucking splinter.

Warren interrupted his train of thought. Again. “Like you said, Mr. Arthur, I am busy man and I have places to be. So if we could wrap this up?”

Dom nodded. “Thank you for your business, Mr. Warren.” He said, “Arthur will be in contact with you regarding the details of the job but be rest assured, you will have the information you want as soon as possible.”

Warren nodded back, a businessman's nod that expected shit to be done. “Alright. Mr. Eames will brief you on what is to be done. I believe you have all the information?” Eames made a sound of assent. “I’ll leave you gentlemen to it. And, don’t worry this hotel is paid for till the end of the next week. You have until then to deliver.” With that, Warren gave them all another fucking nod then turned and left to room with long, confident strides.

There was a moment’s silence that Eames broke with a, “Alright, lads, why don’t we take this to the bar and discuss business over a few beers, hm?” Arthur couldn’t help himself. He huffed in annoyance. “That might be how you do business, Mr. Eames but Dom and I prefer to not be inebriated while we are on the job.”

Eames turned towards Arthur with an expression that looked vaguely predatory and mostly just deranged. Okay, he was being unfair, Eames looked delighted. Maybe the best tactic with him was the same one his mother advised him to use against kindergarten bullies- do not engage.

“You need to loosen up, darling,” He said, dropping all semblance of professionalism. If Eames had meant to put him at ease then he had failed horribly. The pet name only managed to get Arthur’s back up even more. “I’m completely fine as I am. Maybe you need to be a little more prudent.” “You know the words comes from ‘prude’, don’t you? Which I might say is a very good descriptor for you if I were that rude.”

Before Arthur could reply, Dom cut in with a, “Do you two know each other?” as he squinted at them both. “No.” Arthur said a little forcefully.

“Well, I like your suggestion Mr. Eames. And I could use a drink.” Dom answered, as he pocketed his phone and started walking towards the door, cutting through the tension that was hanging between Arthur and Eames as he walked in between them to get to the other side. “I’ll join you in a moment, Dom.” Arthur said as he turned away from Eames, effectively ending any attempts at conversation. He heard Dom’s acknowledgement as he went to pick up his folder and heard two sets of feet walking to the door, and the snick of the door shutting behind them. He was leafing through the folder when the murmur of two voices wafted into the room and one of them walked away. There was a beep indicating the key card had been used, then a soft noise that told Arthur the door had been shut behind someone.

“Forget something?” he asked Eames who was now leaning against the closed door. “No, just waiting for the opportune moment.” He replied, pushing away from the door and walking towards Arthur. “Opportune moment for what?” Arthur asked, confused. “To apologize. I had no idea who you were when you walked into that coffee shop. I simply-“ Arthur raised a hand to stop him. “I get it. You were flirting because that was your cover. It’s fine. You don’t need to explain yourself.”

Eames rolled his eyes. “Arthur, you’re smarter than that. You know that what I did drew unnecessary attention towards me and that is the last thing I should have done.” Arthur paused, giving himself a second to reevaluate his entire morning. He felt entitled to it, after having his world turned on its head-twice and by the same man. He didn’t do himself or Eames the injustice of asking stupid questions like, ‘So why did you?’ or ‘What does this mean?’.

Instead he looked up at Eames and nodded, a small, lopsided smile curling on his lips, causing his cheek to dimple. “Let’s go do our jobs, Mr. Eames.” He said instead, ever the professional. “And maybe after, I’ll tell you if I changed my mind or not.”


End file.
